In many developed countries, major portions of the populations consider electronic devices to be integral to their lives. Such increasing use and dependence has generated a demand for electronics devices that are smaller and faster. As electronic circuitry increases in speed and decreases in size, cooling of such devices becomes problematic.
Electronic devices generally contain printed circuit boards having integrally connected electronic components that allow the overall functionality of the device. These electronic components, such as processors, transistors, resistors, capacitors, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), etc., generate significant amounts of heat. As it builds, heat can cause various thermal problems associated with both the printed circuit board and internally in many electronic components. Significant amounts of heat can affect the reliability of an electronic device, or even cause it to fail by, for example, causing burn out or shorting both within the electronic components themselves and across the surface of the printed circuit board. Thus, the buildup of heat can ultimately affect the functional life of the electronic device. This is particularly problematic for electronic components with high power and high current demands, as well as for the printed circuit boards that support them.
The prior art often employs fans, heat sinks, Peltier and liquid cooling devices, etc., as means of reducing heat buildup in electronic devices. As increased speed and power consumption cause increasing heat buildup, such cooling devices generally must increase in size to be effective and also require power in and of themselves to operate. For example, fans must be increased in size and speed to increase airflow, and heat sinks must be increased in size to increase heat capacity and surface area. The demand for smaller electronic devices, however, not only precludes increasing the size of such cooling devices, but may also require a significant size decrease.
As a result, methods and associated devices are being sought to provide adequate cooling of electronic devices while minimizing size and power constraints placed on such devices due to cooling.